BELOW are excerpts of viewpoints from two selected research houses on what investors can expect in the day ahead:
Berjaya Research
The FBM KLCI staged a recovery alongside gains across regional markets as the key index re-claimed the 1,700 psychological level on Tuesday.
Trading activity improved to 2.81 billion shares against 2.38 billion shares in the previous session as investors capitalised on the improved market sentiment.
Market breadth also turned positive with 684 advancers outpacing 425 decliners, supported by bargain hunting that stemmed from optimism over stable regional cues.
Going forward, the FBM KLCI is expected to remain in a cautious mode as market participants will be monitoring the upcoming US Producer Price Index (PPI) release for signs of persistent sticky inflation.
Meanwhile, the US Federal Reserve is widely expected to keep interest rates on hold at the 3.50%-3.75% range later tonight with the focus shifting to Federal Reserve Chairman Powell’s guidance over the recent energy shock and Middle East volatility that could have delayed the timeline and prospects for potential interest rate cuts.
Technically, the FBM KLCI has formed a bullish candlestick to climb above the 1,700 psychological level.
Sustaining above the aforementioned level could lift the key index higher towards the immediate resistance located at 1,720 points, followed by 1,733 points. Meanwhile, key support levels remain pegged at 1,685 points and 1,670 points respectively.
Malacca Securities Research
In view of the rebound on Wall Street, we believe the local market will continue to trend higher.
We anticipate that buying interest will re-emerge in IJM Corp Bhd following Permodalan Nasional Bhd’s (PNB) rejection of Sunway Bhd’s offer to acquire IJM Corp Bhd at RM3.15/share.
PNB has cited an intrinsic value gap, supported by IJM’s plan to list its construction and toll road businesses within the next two years, coupled with an unbilled order book of approximately RM9.6 bil,
We further expect Sunway Healthcare Bhd (M+ target price: RM1.51) which will be listed on the Main Market today (March 18) to attract decent buying interest given its potential to be included in the FBM KLCI in the future.
While the FBM KLCI closed on a stronger footing yesterday, the technical indicators are showing mixed signals at the current juncture as the MACD histogram has started expanding into the positive region while the RSI is still trading below 50.
Resistance is seen around 1,725-1,730 with support at 1,690-1,695. – March 18, 2026
